Descendant of the Rose
by Emotive Gothika
Summary: Living with a "curse" doesn't stop Naruto from being as normal as he can be. He is eager to experience school, first love, and general teenage drama. But what happens when his secret life threatens his normal existence? NaruSasu
1. Intro

**Title:** Descendant of the Rose

**Summary:** Living with a "curse" doesn't stop Naruto from being as normal as he can be. He is eager to experience school, first love, and general teenage drama. But what happens when his secret life threatens his normal existence? NaruSasu

**Pairing/s:** Naruto x Sasuke (main), Kyuubi/Kurama x Haku (crack pairing! XD), others that will be revealed in due time…

**A/N:** I love Versailles. I'm practically obsessed with them now. Their sound is so unique and they're so elegant and beautiful and I truly wish I could dress like them. And Hizaki! OMG, not only does he make awesome guitar riffs, he makes a beautiful girl too! And Kamijo's voice! It takes some getting used to, but it's so unique as well and that's why I love it! Gah, why can't American bands be as awesome as them?! DX

*cough* Anyway... this story was _very slightly_ inspired by Versailles and their short TV series Onegai Kanaete Versailles. Chapter titles are the titles of Versailles' songs which may or may not actually mean anything about the chapter itself. Also, the songs themselves may or may not be the theme for that chapter. Think of it what you will and don't hurt yourself along the way. :3

Now, please enjoy the story!

**Warning/s:** OOCs, language, slash, a bit of violence, supernatural situations, slight manga spoilers

**Disclaimer:** Naruto and the band Versailles does not belong to me, no matter how many times I wish on a shooting star. T^T

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><p><em>~*~ Chapter One: ~*~<em>

_~*~ Intro ~*~_

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><p><em><strong>Aristocrats beautifully attired...<strong>_

When Naruto saw them for the first time, the first thing that he thought was that they were beautiful people.

He had seen beautiful people before, walking down the street or through the windows of their homes, but never had he seen people that looked so ethereal, like they didn't even belong in this plane of existence.

Their movements were graceful, almost like they had practiced them over and over again to the point that they seemed to glide instead of walk. Their skin was pale, yet not sickly, making it seemingly glow in the moonlight like an otherworldly creature. And their eyes held a depth that no ordinary person had, like they knew pain and loneliness and have seen many horrifying things in their lifetime.

For some reason, Naruto felt drawn to them. He felt like something was calling out to him whenever he saw them. It was a rather faint call, yet strong enough for him to feel it and recognize it for what it was. The call was usually strongest when he locked eyes with the tallest – and possibly most intimidating – man in the group.

The man looked the most regal out of all of them. He had long red hair, narrow green eyes and despite his regal air he still had a feral look to him. Somewhat like a fox, sleek and cunning but fierce to fight back when cornered. Naruto was drawn to that man most of all. There was something familiar about him, but he couldn't put his finger on why he felt that way.

Nevertheless, Naruto never approached the group, no matter how strong an urge he felt to do so. He didn't want to be wrong about his feelings and get rejected like so many times before. After all, these people were beautiful and he was just a street orphan, a nobody. They were from different worlds and he didn't deserve their attention.

He didn't deserve anything…

_**In a world filled with the smell of roses, there lived two clans**_

It was evening, just nearing eight o'clock, and Naruto hurried over to the busy park he was assigned to with several other kids. At seven years old, Naruto was a skinny little thing and looked much younger than he really was. He wore a faded blue shirt that was three sizes too big on his tiny frame, a pair of shorts, and dirt brown flip flops that were several sizes too big for his feet and slapped loudly on the pavement as he ran. His skin was dirty and smudged, his blond hair greasy and limp, and his wide blue eyes that should have been sparkling with laughter and life were as serious as a seven-year-old's eyes could be.

It was not an uncommon sight to see, as sad as it may seem. There were homeless kids everywhere that looked similar to Naruto and the people of Konoha were used to the sight of them wandering the streets, begging for change from passerby.

Naruto was one of those street kids. He stationed himself on the sidewalk, next to a lamppost, and shook his tin can at passerby, asking for alms. Most people ignored him, since he was a filthy street kid, but he could sense the pity in their eyes. Some may have wanted to help him, but he knew that their own lives were more important than his. He knew that he didn't deserve their help. He didn't even deserve their pity.

_**One who believed that death brings everlasting happiness. The others seek eternal life.**_

After an hour or so of begging, Naruto decided to take a break. He stretched his arms over his head, trying to relieve his limbs of their tension, and he went to sit on the curb to rest his aching feet. Across the busy street, there was a café of the kind where tables were set up outside as well. Most of the customers that sat outside were smoking, but there was a group of five that wasn't. They seemed to be eating outside just to enjoy the night air, though that seemed a little hard to do considering it was a city full of pollution.

Naruto had been seeing the group every night for two weeks now. He had the strangest feeling that they were following him, but they never showed any signs that they were aside from showing up wherever Naruto was. They hardly even noticed him, too busy with their sightseeing or whatever it was they were doing every night.

Though it should be suspicious, Naruto couldn't bring himself to feel that way. It was like some unknowable force was trying to push him towards the beautiful group of people and it felt… _right_. It was as if he was supposed to meet those people, that those people will change his life for the better if he just plucked up the courage and go over to them.

However as soon as those thoughts appeared in his mind, he pushed them away. He was a lowly street urchin and, as his caretaker Mizuki would always remind him and his fellow street urchins, they didn't deserve anything and aside from begging they should leave ordinary people alone. Such is the lonely life of a street kid.

_**One day both dreams become reality.**_

"Hey look! There's Naruto!"

Hearing his name being called, Naruto turned his head and a scowl instantly formed on his face when he saw who it was calling him. A boy a few years older than him and surrounded by other boys the same age approached the little blond. There were leers on the other boys' faces and that did not sit well on Naruto's stomach. They were known to cause trouble with the other orphans and they were favored by Mizuki as well, so Naruto knew that it was not going to be pleasant to interact with them.

"What do you want, Otoha?" the blond asked warily.

"Eh? We're hurt Naruto-kun!" the leader, Otoha, said, looking mock-offended. "Can't a friend just hang out with another friend when he wants to?"

"When have we ever been friends?" Naruto shot back, a hand unconsciously reaching up to rub at his scarred cheek. It was because of Otoha and his gang that he got those scars. He would never forgive them for that.

Otoha just smirked and reached out to grab the tin can that Naruto left sitting on the pavement next to him. Naruto let out an indignant "oi!" and he reached out for the can, but was held back by the other boys who were obviously bigger and stronger than he was.

"Ne, Naruto, I'm sure you won't mind if we take your earnings, huh?" Otoha said, rattling the can tauntingly in front of Naruto's face. "We're a bit short you see, but you'll be a good friend and give it to us, right?"

"No way, give it back!" Naruto yelled, struggling in the tight grip the other boys had him in. "If I don't have enough money I'll be punished!"

"Not our problem, is it?" Otoha said with a nonchalant shrug and Naruto had enough.

_**The others would never be destroyed. They were forced to live in loneliness, like a neverending punishment.**_

The little blond managed to stomp on the foot of one boy holding him. As the boy howled in pain, he slipped out of the loosened grip, kicked the other boy who was holding him, and then launched himself at Otoha. The older boy cried out in surprise, but struggled as Naruto tried to pry the can away from his hands.

"I said give it back!"

"As if you freak!"

Soon the other boys joined in and they easily pulled Naruto away from Otoha, though not without a few scratches and bruises from the intense struggling Naruto dished out. The blond may be small, but he wasn't one to back off easily.

"Crazy freak!" Otoha spat, glaring at the struggling Naruto. "Hey, throw him into the street!"

Naruto's body locked in fright at the sentence. Everyone knew that the streets around Konoha Memorial Park were busy and it was dangerous to try and jaywalk across it. And if they were going to push him into the busy intersection…

"Dude, Otoha, that's going too far," said one of the other boys who had some common sense and at least a conscience for this kind of thing.

Otoha rolled his eyes and stalked forward, grabbing a still frozen Naruto by the collar and shoving him towards the street. "You guys are cowards," he muttered and before any of the other boys could protest, he pushed Naruto off of the sidewalk and onto the busy street.

_**Centuries later, the others' time had come.**_

Naruto couldn't react. He felt frozen stiff, even as Otoha grabbed him and pushed him off the curb. He was aware though, aware of his body flying through the air, his feet stumbling along the ground, and he was aware of the car coming straight towards him at near high speed.

He was doubly aware of his body hitting the hood of the car and then the windshield, causing it to crack at the force of his body slamming into it. The car screeched to a halt (thankfully) and Naruto rolled off of the hood and onto the ground, hitting his head harshly on the pavement. His blue eyes were wide with shock and disbelief, but they soon glazed over as the pain finally registered in his brain.

Everything hurt, especially his head, which was throbbing painfully in time with his heartbeat. His vision was going in and out of focus and he could barely breathe. He tried moving, tried to sit up, but it was futile. Even the thought of moving around made his body throb in pain.

He could hear a few hurried voices around him and he was sure someone said, "Call an ambulance, quick!" Thank God for small mercies. At least someone out there was kind-hearted enough to think of his well-being, even though he was just a street kid.

_**Descendants of the Rose appeared.**_

Naruto didn't know how long he laid there on the ground. He wasn't even sure if he was going to survive this. His vision had already gone so blurry he could have been looking through frosted glass and he couldn't hear anything aside from the muffled words of those concerned people around him. In the distance, he could vaguely hear the blare of an oncoming ambulance, yet he couldn't be sure. Everything ached so much and all he wanted to do was close his eyes and sleep…

As a street orphan, Naruto wasn't ignorant to the concept of death. At a much younger age, he had witnessed a couple people, even a few of his fellow orphans, lose their lives and it had terrified him back then. Yet now, the thought of him dying seemed almost pleasant to him. At least he wouldn't have to endure the painful, lonely life of a street child any longer.

"_You are not going to die._"

If Naruto had the energy he would have jumped at the voice, however all his body did was twitch slightly. Strange that he could hear this baritone voice so clearly yet everything else was muffled like someone put layers of cloth around his ears.

_**With their meeting, the memory of that day came flooding back.**_

"_We have been waiting for you, young one. Now, you shall take your rightful place with us._"

The little blond wondered what exactly the voice was talking about, but then he felt cold hands adjust his body into a straight position and something was wrapped around his neck before he was carefully picked up and place down on something soft and a bit hard, but not uncomfortable. He felt whatever he was laying on move across the slightly uneven ground and fingers were pressing on his arms, his legs, his neck, his face. Someone peeled back his eyelid and there was a bright shine that suggested the same someone was shining a light in his eyes, but it barely irritated his vision. Everything was still so blurry and God he was so tired…

"_Let go now and be reborn. We will come to you soon, young one..._"

And it was with that, Naruto's eyes slipped closed, flashes of red appearing in his mind's eye as his heart slowed to a stop.

_**And so the descendants joined their ancestors in an eternity of loneliness.**_

Across the street from the crowd of paramedics, policemen, and curious onlookers, a group of five beautiful people sat outside a café, occasionally glancing over at the chaos but not really looking interested in it all. In fact, their eyes seemed to have a look of excitement and anticipation and small smiles took form on their lips.

The red-haired man – no doubt the leader of the group if the way he held himself was anything to go by – lightly held his sweating glass of iced tea, swiping his thumb through the droplets of water running down the outside of the glass. There was a pensive expression on his face despite the smirk gracing his lips. As the paramedics across the street wheeled the near-dead little blond boy into the ambulance, the man lifted his glass in a small toast, his eyes fixed on the prone form on the gurney.

"Welcome to eternity… Naruto…"

_**They were the ones who believed in death…**_

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><p><strong>AN:** There you have it, the prologue of my little story. If you're confused, well, you're going to have to wait until everything is explained. I hope you'll enjoy the ride as the mystery unfolds (which won't be for a while) and I know I'll enjoy writing it. Though don't expect fast updates. I have quite a lot on my plate. I should be beating myself up for starting another story, but I wanted to post this chapter before the novelty of knowing the bijuus names wears off (that's a spoiler for those who don't read the manga at this time!). Ah, I love the bijuus. Their names are awesome, especially the Yonbi! XD

The chapter title Intro truly is a Versailles song. It is the first song in the Lyrical Sympathy album, right before The Love From A Dead Orchestra (or at least I think it is…). Also, the story in bolded italics was taken from The Revenant Choir PV/single, though slightly edited.

Oh, and don't forget to check out Versailles' songs! Their international name is Versailles Philharmonic Quintet and don't be fooled by their appearance and the fact that they had two crossdressers (their late bassist, Jasmine You – yes, he's a dude – died back in '09, but Hizaki is still alive and looking beautiful). Their music is labeled as symphonic power metal with orchestra snippets, heavy and fast guitar riffs, quick drum beats, baritone vocals, and a hot bassist which makes up for the fact that you can barely hear the bass. I love them so much! TT~TT

*Ahem* So, that's it I guess? Thank you for reading, please drop a review, and forgive me when I take long to update (because I _will_ take long to update). I have high hopes for this story and _hopefully_ I won't get disinterested by it. Hopefully… Oh God help me…


	2. Amorphous

**A/N:** Oh look at this, I actually wrote chapter two! I am so proud of myself. But again, dear readers, don't expect frequent updates. I'm crap at updating. I'm also crap at keeping a consistent writing style, so forgive me if some chapters are shittier than others. *sigh* Why did I decide to become a writer if I'm crap at it…?

Oh, I made a few changes in the previous chapter, though I doubt its relevant. And I also changed the summary. I kinda thought that it was because of the old summary that didn't get me a lot of readers… or reviews… am I that bad? Q~Q

One last note… This is NOT a vampire fic, repeat, _NOT_ a vampire fic. No one will be sucking blood to continue existing (can't really say living, LOL) but I'm pretty sure blood will be spilt and there will be the ripping of throats, though that won't be until much later. There will also not be any "destined mates" or "reincarnations" or all that crap. I think we have enough vampire fics out there anyway, yeah? Now, on with the chapter!

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><p><em>~*~ Chapter Two: ~*~<em>

_~*~Amorphous ~*~_

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><p>"… <em>Hurry it up! Wring it out! Though my legs are all tangled, they will surely take me far... Even if I steal it and manage to grasp it, if it isn't you, then what's the point? So I'll go further and further away!<em>"(1)

A head of sunshine blond hair bobbed along to the beat of the song that flowed from the headphones that sat upon it. Rosy lips that flashed hidden snow white teeth moved to form words as the voice of the owner sang out the lyrics in perfect tune. Strong lightly tanned hands, calloused from years of working with various instruments and other things, tapped on burgundy-covered thighs as if it were playing the drums.

Sitting across the blond was a beautiful woman with long black hair framing a fair-skinned face and wide brown doe eyes. What most people didn't know though that this "woman" was actually a man and he wasn't shy in admitting it. With his pale pink lips curving into a small smile that made his face look even more beautiful, Kiriga Haku leaned forward and placed a hand on one of the blond's, stilling his movements and catching his attention.

"We're here Naruto-kun," Haku said, his voice soft and musical and can also be mistaken for a woman's.

Naruto opened his eyes, revealing twin orbs of ocean blue that shone with both excitement and nervousness. Grinning a little sheepishly, Naruto turned off his music player and let his headphones hang around his neck before turning to the window next to him to look outside.

The car they were riding in had just stopped on the curb right outside Konoha Academy. It was a large campus with three main buildings for elementary, middle, and high school students, along with the sports fields and gymnasium that was shared by everyone. Naruto's eyes shone even more as he looked up at the high school building that was located at the South side of the campus, feeling excitement swell up in his chest so much that it was almost difficult for him to breathe.

Ever since he had been adopted by the man that changed his life so much, Naruto had been home schooled. He had never really had other children to play with and even when he did, he still mostly kept to himself for fear of getting hurt like so many times in the past. But still, despite his fear, Naruto yearned to make true friends of his own. He yearned to experience what school life was like. Would it be like on television, where there was so much drama between friends and enemies and teachers? Or will it be plain boring with only focusing on his studies and whether he got perfect grades? He didn't know and he wanted to know regardless of the result.

So, after practically begging on his knees before his guardian, Naruto got his wish. They had all moved back to his hometown of Konoha where he was going to attend his senior year of high school before going off to college. It made Naruto feel both nervous and excited and the butterflies in his stomach felt less like butterflies and more like hungry vultures that were pecking at his insides. It was very frightening yet so exhilarating! Naruto barely knew what to think.

"Wow, look at all those students," Naruto murmured, his eyes roaming over the hordes of high school students that were walking towards the school building. "Ugh, I'm so nervous I feel like I'm going to throw up!" He placed a hand over his stomach and bent over slightly, a frown marring his features.

A glimmer of worry flashed in Haku's eyes but he covered it with a smile and he leaned forward, squeezing Naruto's hand to gain his attention. "You're going to do fine Naruto-kun," he said, his eyes showing only sincerity as he spoke. "I believe in you. We all do."

Naruto's face turned a soft shade of red and he smiled shyly at Haku who had been somewhat of a mother figure to him years. "Ne, Haku-hime… do you think they'll like me? Do you think I'll make a lot of friends?"

Haku laughed a tinkling laugh, like wind chimes shaking in the breeze. "What's not to like? You're a wonderful boy Naruto-kun; smart, talented, friendly, kind-hearted, and very handsome. It's hard not to like a boy like you and I doubt anyone can resist being your friend."

A grin overtook Naruto's features. Though deep down he didn't actually believe Haku's words, it still made him feel better.

"Hehe, I'm glad Obi-san and Shin-san aren't here," he said with mirth. "If they were they'll probably tease me to no end because of my nervousness."

"I'm sure," Haku chuckled. "Fortunately they're at the studio with Kurama-sama and Hiruko, where I also must be or else we'll fall a bit behind schedule." Taking his hand from Naruto's (who had to forcibly steel himself from reaching out and grabbing it again) and leaning back his seat, Haku continued. "Now, do you have your books?"

"Yes hime."

"Notebooks?"

"Yes."

"Pencils and pens?"

"Check and check."

"Your bento?"

"Still warm."

"Money for the bus?"

"In my wallet."

"Cellphone."

"Fully charged."

"Well then, it seems you have everything," Haku said with a nod. "Now, off you go. We'll see you later okay?"

Smiling softly, Naruto breathed out an okay and reached to open the door of the car. Before stepping out however, Naruto leaned back and pressed a kiss on Haku's cheek, whispering a "Thank you, Mama," before quickly leaving the car and slamming the door behind him.

A little stunned at the action, Haku placed a hand on his cheek and felt his chest tighten at Naruto's words. When the boy had been much younger and naive, he had taken to calling the effeminate man Mama. He had only stopped when he had been enlightened about Haku's true gender. However every one once in a while, when he was in an emotional state, he would slip back to that term of endearment and it never failed to make Haku feel touched and swell with love for the boy.

"Good luck, Naruto-kun," Haku whispered at Naruto's disappearing back through the car window. Somehow, in Haku's tone of voice, he wasn't just talking about school.

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><p>As soon as Naruto stepped across the threshold of the school, he had to visibly restrain himself from bouncing in excitement. He was finally here, in high school, with other high school kids. He was excited because he knew he was going to have so much fun and yet nervous because he didn't know what to expect for he had lived a life mostly in solitude and never really hung around kids his own age. Still, he was glad that Kurama had given the okay for him to study in school. It was practically his dream come true.<p>

Walking through the aisles of shoe lockers, looking for the one he was assigned to, Naruto observed the other students. They were all wearing the school's spring uniform; burgundy pants or skirt, white long-sleeved button-up shirt, a red necktie, and a cream school jacket lined with burgundy and bearing the school coat of arms on the left breast. However probably only a third of the school population was wearing them properly like Naruto was; plenty of students had their jackets open with their white shirts untucked, others had forgone the necktie, and even more incorporated their own styles into the uniform. Naruto was a little confused by this since he knew that uniforms were called uniforms for a reason, but he soon realized that in a school full of teenagers it was expected for there to be acts of rebellion. Heck, Naruto had done plenty of rebellious acts while growing up, though that was mostly due to Shin and Obito's influence.

Once he put away his loafers and donned his school shoes (white with blue on the toes to signify that he was a senior) (2) Naruto made his way to the main office, needing to meet with the principal. It was still quite early in the school year, but Naruto had been late to enroll so three school weeks had already passed. Not only that, Naruto was also in his senior year and home schooling was quite different from public schooling, so he had plenty of catching up to do.

"Ah, you must be the new student," said the black haired secretary (the name plate read Hotori Shizune) as Naruto walked up to her desk just outside the principal's office. "Tsunade-san is free now, so you may enter her office, though make sure you knock."

Smiling his understanding at the kind-looking secretary, Naruto approached the door that had the sign "Principal Senju Tsunade, M.D." hanging on it and he knocked quickly. Idly he wondered why a doctor of medicine would be the principal of a high school. He had never heard of something like that before and wondered if this Tsunade was the only one of her kind.

"Enter!"

Once he got his permission, Naruto opened the door and stepped inside, but stopped short at the sight that caught his eye. The office was the standard office; desk, chairs, bookshelves, with pictures, diplomas, and certificates hanging on the cream walls. Not really any different from any other office. Yet what shocked Naruto was the fact that there was a piglet, decked out in a red vest and a faux pearl necklace, sitting on the desk in front of a blonde woman who had the biggest bosom he had ever seen. And judging by the dates on the certificates and diplomas, the woman looked younger then she really was. It was a strange sight indeed and Naruto had seen his fair share of strangeness in his life.

"Well don't just stand there, get inside," the blonde woman said, looking just a tiny bit irritated at Naruto's prone figure.

The sentence snapped the younger blond out of his staring and he quickly closed the door behind him and went to sit in the chair that was indicated for him. Once Naruto had made himself comfortable, the piglet approached him, sniffling and snorting at him for a moment or so before letting out a squeal and hopping into his lap, causing Naruto to jump in surprise at the action. The woman – Tsunade no doubt – just chortled as her piglet curled itself in Naruto's lap and settled down for a nap.

"Well, it seems that Tonton likes you," she said fondly. Naruto didn't reply, not really knowing what to say to that. "Anyway, down to business. You are Uzumaki Naruto, sixteen years old, and just starting school for the first time, correct?"

Tearing his gaze away from the sleeping pig in his lap, Naruto nodded his head at Tsunade and said, "Yes ma'am."

Tsunade hummed as she leafed through a few papers. "Your aptitude test results came back as above average, so of course you were placed with the seniors, where you belong. However you still have some catching up to do, seeing as there might be some things that your tutors haven't taught you. But I'm sure you can catch up soon enough, since it's only the start of the year." Shifting through the contents on her desk, Tsunade pulled out a piece of paper and a small burgundy booklet that had the school coat of arms on it and handed both to Naruto, who gave them a cursory glance over. "This is your schedule and school handbook, which you should read and learn well. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask any of the staff, most especially me." Tsunade allowed a smirk to grace her features. "Your guardian specifically asked me to keep an eye on you, saying that you would no doubt cause some trouble in my school."

At that Naruto blushed in embarrassment and he gave Tsunade a sheepish grin. "I can't really deny that Senju-sensei…"

"Call me Tsunade, everyone does," the blonde said with a wave of her hand. "And I certainly hope that you would at least keep the trouble to the minimum. I can tell you're a bright kid Uzumaki, I don't really want any mischievous streak to be a mark on your future."

Naruto nodded in understanding, a little touched at Tsunade's words. Of course, as a principal, it was part of the job to be concerned about her students, but Tsunade seemed quite sincere with her words and the look in her eyes. The younger blond felt a kindling of trust grow in his chest.

"Well, let's not dally around," Tsunade said with a clap of her hands and she stood up, gesturing for Naruto to follow her. "I'll introduce you to your homeroom teacher and he'll take it from there."

Naruto stood up (carefully cradling Tonton in his arms) and followed the principal out of the office and through the hallways. Students were still mingling around the hallways since there was still about five minutes left before class began. They bowed and gave polite greetings to Tsunade and gave Naruto curious glances. Surprisingly they didn't bat an eyelash at the fact that Naruto was holding a piglet, but the blond guessed that everyone in the school knew about Tsunade's pet. Admittedly it wasn't hard to miss.

Soon the two blondes arrived at the teacher's room where all the teachers present bowed and said their greetings to the principal. Once she returned the greeting, Tsunade called for a man at the far end of the teacher's table to approach them.

"Kakashi, this is your new student," Tsunade said promptly. "Naruto, this is Hatake Kakashi, your homeroom teacher."

Kakashi was a tall man with strange silver hair that seemed to defy gravity and shielded his left eye from view. What was stranger though was the fact that the man also wore a black mask over the lower half of his face. Naruto wondered who in the world would hire a man who concealed his face like that. Unless Kakashi had some disfiguring scars that would bother the students (or anyone really) then the mask would be seen as suspicious and it wasn't even a surgical mask to ward off germs or pollen. Then again, maybe Tsunade had already seen the man's face and trusted him enough already.

"Nice to meet you Hatake-sensei," Naruto greeted his teacher with a polite bow, despite the pig in his arms.

The silver-haired man chuckled. "Please call me Kakashi or Kakashi-sensei if you prefer," he said. Naruto idly thought that he and Shin almost had the same color hair, though Shin's was more of a dark grey. "Hatake-sensei makes me sound like my father." Naruto just nodded his assent.

"All right, I'm sure you can take things from here Kakashi," Tsunade spoke up. "Class starts soon so off you go now."

"Thank you very much Tsunade-sensei," Naruto turned to bow at her before giving her Tonton (who sniffled and fidgeted at the transfer) and then followed Kakashi out of the lounge just in time for the bell to ring.

The trip to homeroom class was made in silence. Though Naruto was the kind of person who liked to move and do things and was generally chatty, he didn't mind the silence at all. It gave him a chance to pull himself together for the nervousness that had so far been pushed at the back of his mind had now made its explosive comeback at the pit of his stomach. Naruto couldn't remember the last time he had felt this nervous; probably back when he first played in front of an audience. Or way back when he first met Kurama and the gang and was told of his duty. Oh that last one really made his head spin.

"Here we are," Kakashi said as he came to a stop in front of a classroom labeled 7-C. "Ready for this Uzumaki-kun?"

"Just Naruto please," the young blond said with a nod. "And yeah, I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

Kakashi's visible eye crinkled and Naruto assumed that he was smiling behind his mask. "Don't worry about it. You're going to do fine, kid."

Naruto barely had time to bristle at being called a kid (he hated that) when Kakashi slid open the classroom door and stepped inside. The blond stayed back, though he did peek in slightly to watch the proceedings.

"Yo, looks like my horde of hellions is quite energetic today!" Kakashi spouted as he strolled up to the front of the class and placed his things on the desk.

And perhaps that was a bit of an understatement. The second or so that Naruto glimpsed the class before Kakashi walked in showed that they were quite rowdy. Most of the girls were hanging with each other and chatting loudly, some of them retouching their make up. Some groups of guys were either messing around with each other or were busy throwing bits of paper at the girls, annoying them. In short, Naruto got stuck in the rowdy class and he wasn't sure whether he was relieved that he wouldn't be bored or worried that he would get looped in with a potential "bad crowd".

When Kakashi had strolled through the door, the whole class froze, their eyes going wide at the sight of their teacher. Then they scrambled for their seats, trying and failing to look like they had been doing nothing at all.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei, you're early!" one boy with shaggy brown hair and curious red markings on his cheeks blurted out. Naruto had to raise an eyebrow at that. It was about five minutes after the school bell rang and the boy was claiming that Kakashi was early?

"Ah, I would have arrived here on my standard time of fifteen minutes before second period," Wait. Seriously? What kind of a teacher was this man? "But I had a little visit from the principal earlier."

Several of the students snickered. "She finally decided to actually make you do work?" a girl with platinum blonde hair and baby blue eyes asked.

"You can say that," Kakashi shrugged. "I'm actually here to introduce a new student into our class." That brought some excited whispers from the students and made Naruto's stomach clench. Oh the suspense. "Naruto-kun, you can come in now."

Taking a deep breath and steeling his resolve, Naruto stepped into the room, keeping his head high and a pleasant expression on his face. Once he stood next to the teacher's desk and faced the class, he felt like he was on stage and strangely it made him feel a bit better. He knew what it was like to be on stage and it was actually a comforting thought. Maybe if he thought of this as a performance, he would feel less nervous.

"So, this here's Uzumaki Naruto," Kakashi stated after he had written Naruto's name on the board. "He has never been to a school before, having only been home schooled, so I expect you to treat him nicely and help him get used to school."

Naruto took the pause to bow at the class and subsequently his new classmates. "Nice to meet you. I hope we'll all be good friends!" he grinned brightly. Some students grinned or even waved back.

"All right, anyone have any questions for Naruto-kun?"

Hands were thrust into the air, surprising Naruto a little at how many. Kakashi pointed at the girl that had spoken before. "Are you a natural blond?" she asked with a leer and the class laughed.

"Um, yes I am," Naruto answered with a twitchy smile. _What kind of a question is that? And to a guy you just met!_

"Oh really? Prove it!"

Before Naruto could even sputter, Kakashi butted in. "Ino, I'd appreciate it if you leave the perverted comments to me," he stated and the class tittered. Naruto just gave him an incredulous glance. "Now, any other non-perverted questions?"

More hands and this time Kakashi pointed to a rather portly fella with brown hair. "Where'd you get those scars on your cheeks?"

Naruto reached up to slap a hand over his cheek, his heart skipping a beat in the process. He had a feeling that his scars were going to attract attention, but he wasn't expecting it to be this soon. Of course there was no way he was going to tell the truth about how he got those scars. He didn't want anyone to look at him differently after they heard the story and he was sure that those looks were going to be filled with pity at every time they laid their eyes on his face.

"Car accident," he said smoothly even though he was sure there was barely anyone who believed his blatant lie.

"Okay, one last question before we begin class."

A girl with black hair was chosen next. Her question was whether or not Naruto was single, which he responded with yes and that received a few titters and whispers from the girls that Naruto wasn't sure he understood. Kakashi only shook his head before shooing Naruto to the only empty seat in the room (it was at the third column and row) and then class finally began.

Naruto was even more confused when the rest of the class seemed shocked that Kakashi was actually teaching today. Just what kind of school was he enrolled in?

* * *

><p>The rest of the morning went by in what would have been a blur if Naruto didn't remember everything that happened. He was actually enjoying his classes because the teachers were much more interesting than his tutors, who seemed to live to make things boring. After Kakashi's history class was English with a man named Umino Iruka who had his brown hair tied up and a scar that stretched from cheekbone to cheekbone but didn't hinder his kind expression in any way whatsoever. When Iruka had called on Naruto to speak a passage from their book, everyone was surprised to hear Naruto speak it perfectly and with barely an accent in his voice. That was where the blond proclaimed that he had lived in the USA for quite some time and in fact he and his family moved quite a lot, hence his home schooling. When asked what other languages Naruto spoke, he admitted that aside from English and Japanese, he also knew French, Mandarin Chinese, and was fairly proficient in Latin. The admission earned him more than some wide-eyed stares from his classmates.<p>

After English class was Science with Sarutobi Asuma-sensei, who didn't look like the part of a science teacher though taught it quite well. Then after Science was Literature with Mitarashi Anko-sensei who seemed to like to wear less clothes then was legal for a high school teacher (earning appreciative stares from the boys) and enjoyed to point ballpen tips flush against student's throats when they weren't paying attention to her lecture.

Anko-sensei was the one that freaked Naruto out the most. At least at the moment.

At lunch, Naruto was dragged along by some of his classmates, who took it upon themselves to show him around the school. He was introduced to Inuzuka Kiba (the brown-haired boy with the cheek markings), Yamanaka Ino (the platinum blonde girl), a rather husky boy with long shaggy brown hair named Akimichi Chouji, and a slouching bored-looking boy named Nara Shikamaru. He was shown by the four (well, two since only Kiba and Ino bothered to talk to him while Chouji ate his chips and Shikamaru tagged along quietly) the school gym and sports fields, club rooms, and other classrooms, where they stopped by to pick up some other friends.

From class 3-C, Naruto met Haruno Sakura (a pretty strawberry blonde girl), Hyuuga Hinata (a shy girl with dark hair and light gray eyes), and Aburame Shino (a spiky-haired boy who wore round sunglasses for some reason). With the three new additions to the group, the eight of them made their way to the school cafeteria. Few schools in Japan had cafeterias, but since Konoha Academy was quite well-off it could afford the extra expenses.

With his lunch in hand, Naruto sat with his new group of friends, feeling a little giddy at having made so many already. They asked him questions about himself, like his favorite color (orange), his favorite kind of music (he'd listen to any kind but he loved rock the most), and his favorite food (ramen). He hesitated when he was asked what his parents did; like with his scars, he didn't want to tell the truth and be looked at differently. So he just told a half-truth, that his parents died in a car accident when he was young and he was an orphan, but he lived with his uncle and other relatives. Inevitably there were a few pitying looks, but they weren't so bad. They would surely have been worse if he told them the truth.

The rest of lunch passed by smoothly, though there was one hiccup in the form of a boy named Uchiha Sasuke.

Sasuke was a good-looking boy; his hair was dark, cut short and spiked up at the back with long bangs that framed his face and nearly hid his eyes which were almond-shaped and dark brown – nearly black – in color. His skin was creamy, not quite pale, but fair. He looked almost aristocratic with a straight nose, high cheekbones, and thin pink lips that were shaped into a perfect Cupid's bow. He was the epitome of a Japanese teenager and Naruto found that he liked that. Sasuke's attitude however left much to be desired.

The dark-haired boy had approached the table they were sitting at, lunch tray in hand. He took a seat between Sakura and Shikamaru without a greeting and when he looked up he locked eyes with a curious Naruto. A few seconds went by with the two boys evaluating each other before Sasuke curled his lips into the smallest of sneers and asked, "Who's the moron?"

"Don't call me a moron, you bastard!" was Naruto's eloquent reply. Sasuke just continued sneering a not-sneer.

"Uh," Sakura started awkwardly, eyes darting uneasily between Naruto and Sasuke who sat glaring at each other. "That's Naruto. He's a new student here."

"And Naruto, this is Sasuke," Kiba spoke up, trying to break the building tension by grinning but failing a bit. "He's in class 1-C, but he's part of our group anyway. Don't let him get to you though. He may act like he has a ten foot pole up his ass, but he's a good guy once you get to know him!"

"Yeah, he's a real peach," Naruto bit out. Sasuke switched his glare to Kiba, who raised his hands up in defense.

Soon, the others in the group began conversations, bringing Naruto and Sasuke into separate ones so they wouldn't have to interact with each other. However every once in a while, the two would lock eyes and exchange glares. Even though they had only just met, they seemed to rub each other the wrong way. Naruto wasn't sure why though. Even though he had always had a little problem with trust (it took him a while to accept Kurama and the others) he was virtually friendly with everyone he first meets. Yet Sasuke had just given him a look, called him a moron, and the blond instantly dubbed him a bastard. It was a little strange for him. He was sure Haku had taught him better then that.

Sasuke was still good-looking though, Naruto would give him that, however begrudgingly.

* * *

><p>It was the end of the day and Naruto felt pretty happy. He had made friends, learned and relearned some things, and basically felt the most normal he had ever felt in his life. He grinned happily as he packed away his things, mentally giving himself a pat on the back for surviving his first day of high school without any serious mishaps. He had been expecting to be confronted by the school bullies and provoked into a fight before the day was over, but he guessed that only happened in TV shows or stories. Pity too, because he would have liked to shown off his moves at least. Ah well, he could do that in PE or something.<p>

"Hey Naruto," Kiba exclaimed as he strolled up to the blond, Shikamaru, Chouji, and Ino right behind him. "Wanna hang with us? We're going to go malling for a bit."

Naruto opened his mouth to answer in the affirmative, but then remembered what he promised the other day. "Sorry guys," he said apologetically. "I kinda promised to be home straight after school today. Maybe another day?"

Kiba shrugged. "Sure, I guess."

"See you tomorrow Naruto!" Ino chirped, waving a hand as she turned away. Kiba, Chouji, and Shikamaru followed her after saying their own goodbyes and Naruto felt a warm feeling in his stomach at the thought of having made friends so quickly.

After making sure he had all his school things in his bag, Naruto left the classroom and maneuvered his way through the throngs of students still hanging around. He was feeling a little anxious to go meet his family and tell them about his day, so he was hurrying just a bit. That didn't seem to be a smart decision for, as he was turning a corner, he harshly bumped into someone.

That someone happened to be Uchiha Sasuke.

"Watch where you're going Uzumaki," the brunet hissed, glaring at Naruto as the papers he previously held fluttered to the ground.

"Sorry," Naruto said with a roll of his eyes and he bent down to collect the fallen papers. "I was in a bit of a hurry."

Sasuke also bent to gather his papers however Naruto heard the muttered, "Moron," that came from the Uchiha's lips. The blond lifted his head to glare at Sasuke, but paused when he noticed that the other boy was wearing stylish square-framed glasses that were colored black at the top and then bled to red towards the bottom. It gave the Uchiha a rather fetching air of intelligence and brought attention to those alluring dark brown eyes.

"What?" Sasuke snapped, jerking Naruto out of his staring. Too bad those glasses did nothing for his attitude.

"Nothing! Sheesh…" Naruto said, handing the other boy the papers he had gathered as he stood up. "Sorry for bumping into you, Mr. Grumpy Bastard. I'll just be going now, all right?"

"Wait," Sasuke before Naruto could even take a step and the blond watched as the other boy rummaged through his pile of papers. Soon, Sasuke produced a handful of pamphlets and shoved them into Naruto's arms.

"What're these?" Naruto asked even as he started to look through them.

"Information on after school activities," Sasuke answered though he made it sound as if Naruto was an idiot for not knowing. "As Student Council President, I'm obligated to give them to you."

That made Naruto raise an incredulous eyebrow. "_You're_ the Student Council President?" Sure he can believe that Sasuke was intelligent, most possibly the top student in the school, but he didn't scream "social" and "helpful" at all. At least to Naruto he didn't.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the blond. "Yes, you got a problem with that?"

"Nope, no problem at all!" Naruto raised his hands in mock surrender. "Um, thanks for the info." Sasuke just sneered and snootily walked off, leaving Naruto to scratch his head in confusion. "Jeez, what the hell is that guy's problem?" he muttered to himself as he turned and continued with his trek out of the campus.

A walk down the block, a bus ride, and a train ride later, Naruto was stepping into a tall white building with the sign "Hidden Cloud Records" situated right outside the door. He passed through a lobby, cheerfully greeting the receptionist, and took an elevator up a few floors. Once the elevator stopped at his floor he stepped into a long hallway and then into another room – a recording studio – where he was blasted with the sounds of guitar chords.

Sitting at the controls were the redheaded Kurama and dark-haired Obito, both of whom were staring at Haku and a white-haired Kimimaro who were playing melodies on their guitars. The gray-haired Shin(3) was sitting just a way away from them, drum sticks in hand and seeming to randomly hit the air with them, but Naruto knew that he was thinking up of some wicked drum beats to go with the guitars.

"Yo," Naruto said with a grin once all eyes were on him. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Naru!" Obito and Shin exclaimed, shooting up from their seats and running over to crush the blond in between them in a hug. Naruto struggled against them for a moment, but the two were strong and wouldn't let him go.

"I need air you know!" Naruto half-shouted and half-laughed.

With grins on their faces, Obito and Shin released Naruto from their clutches. The blond gulped in exaggerated mouthfuls of air, which the others only laughed at.

"So, how'd your first day go Naru?" Shin asked, looking excited.

"Yeah, spill the beans blondie," Obito chuckled, ruffling Naruto's hair. Said blondie smacked his hands away with a glare which only made the Uchiha chuckle even more.

"I'll tell you soon enough, so be patient," Naruto grumbled, but everyone knew he was just playing along, as was normal in their interactions.

After Naruto greeted Kimimaro, Haku, and Kurama with a hug, he sat down in an available chair and started telling everyone about his day. The adults smiled at his obvious excitement and that was when their worries about their youngest being in school slowly melted away. Naruto looked quite happy attending school and they were silently berating themselves for being doubtful.

"So, your homeroom teacher's name is Hatake Kakashi?" Obito asked once Naruto finished recounting his day.

"Yeah." Naruto nodded.

"Huh… does he have silver hair and wear a mask?"

Naruto looked surprised. "Yeah, how did you know?"

Knowing looks were exchanged between Kurama, Haku, Shin, and Kimimaro but they kept silent. This was a story that only Obito should tell.

Said Uchiha looked a little torn between spilling the beans and keeping his mouth shut. He worked his jaw, as if the words were struggling to be set free but he still kept his lips sealed tight. However, in the end, Obito just shook his head with a sigh.

"I'll tell you some other time okay?" he said, smiling at Naruto's reigned pout. "I promise Naru."

"Yeah," Naruto said, sounding petulant but accepting the promise all the same. He knew that his guardians had many secrets, but he also knew that they will tell him those secrets eventually. Trusting them like that was the least he could do in repayment for saving him from a horrible life.

"Well, since Naruto's first day was a success," Haku spoke up, smiling at the blond who flushed happily, "why don't I go get some take out, hm? What would you like, Naruto-kun?"

"Ramen!" was Naruto's immediate reply, which caused Obito and Shin to groan.

"You just had to ask that Haku-hime," Shin said, looking resigned.

Shrugging nonchalantly as he stood up from his seat, Haku said, "It's Naruto's celebration. You really have no say in it."

"Yeah Shin-san, you have no say in it," Naruto snickered, sticking his tongue out when Shin glared at him.

That started a small argument between the three youngest, which the three others watched on with amusement in their eyes. Huffing out a laugh, Haku turned to Kurama and bent down to place a kiss on redhead's scarred cheek. "I'm glad you said yes," the feminine man whispered to the redhead, giving the other a warm smile before turning to break up the argument that had turned into a scuffle.

With eyes the color of emeralds, Kurama watched his happy charge and he felt a content warmth spread in his heart.

To be honest, though he had been worried at first, Kurama was glad that he said yes too.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** There you have it, Naruto's first day at school described in detail. I hope it didn't bore you. It might be shocking to know, but this story actually does have a plot! I'm just going slow, starting with a little slice-of-life and Naruto building bonds with his friends (well, more with one certain someone but I'm sure you all know that) and then when the time is right and you have let your guards down… SPLAT the shit hits the fan! I'm actually trying to be a bit more organized with my multi-chaptered stories. I'm writing down every idea that I want to incorporate in this story and I'm working on a chapter outline (which I seem to be crap at) so I won't get disinterested too much. Still, if you have any ideas or theories, I'll be happy to read them and will appreciate it very much!

Chapter title is a Versailles song from their JUBILEE album. It sounds like a perfect song to listen to while driving through the city or country or just going through life, even though the lyrics are the complete opposite. X3 Now, um, please review? _Please_? Anyone who does gets Sasuke and Naruto dressed as Noctis and Prompto (because they are _so_ the Sasuke and Naruto of FF Versus XIII).

**Footnotes:**

1 – Anyone recognize this song? No? Well it's the English lyrics of my favorite Naruto theme song, Haruka Kanata sung by Asian Kung Fu Generation (it is the second song in the first series). Totally love that song and the band! X3

2 – I'm not really sure if this goes for all high schools in Japan, but I like the idea of colored shoes to signify what year level one is in. Got the idea from the anime K-ON! though I forgot which color goes to which year in that anime. So instead I went with the colors from my own high school (no I'm not a high school student anymore); green for freshmen, yellow for sophomores, red for juniors, and blue for seniors. Obviously the sophomore one is cut out, so in Konoha Academy it's green, red, and blue for freshmen, juniors, and seniors respectively.

3 – Shin is Sai's "older brother", the one he drew in his little book and the one he had to kill in order to get into Root. I read that he was quite like Naruto when he was younger, though he may be OOC. Sai may or may not appear in this story.


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